Due to lack of common sense Student X just lost an opportunity to get internship interview, internship position and potential full time position at the same company. There are so many computer science graduates looking for internship and Student X threw away a golden opportunity. There are lot of lessons to be learned from above experience.

Question to You

Let us put this question to readers here and see how they should have responded. If you can post your comment and answer the following questions

Phone screen is the synonym for phone interview right? If X even has time to forward his resume just a moment ago, why didn't he spend a couple minutes to answer the hiring manager's interview question on the spot..lol

I think probably he mistook phone screen.. as the actual face to face interview (due to nervous perhaps)

Its obvious that Saturday is not a working day! The student was foolish to have given the availability on a Saturday. And also only one date and one time makes it look how disinterested you are for the job. The interviewer will also have his own appointments and work and might not be available on one specific time you suggest. The most important part is that they dont conduct interviews on weekends! unless the interviewer is very busy and asks to schedule on a weekend which happens sometimes.

We are recruiters and we get these responses all the time; unfortunately usually from Indian computer types. The response that the fool made is great! It helped weed out someone that thinks they are empowered or owed a job. Archishman's response above was perfect – "Anytime you say, Sir”. Or “I am ready right now, Sir”. You want a job in these tight times, you be easy to work with.

Hah! That sounds truly stupid. Guess, many of our Indian Folks still belong to the previous league & are yet to come to terms with the basic requirements of recent times. They seriously need some training in Basic job etiquette… 😀

This Shows that the student X is not that responsible. Moreover,employers look for the interest the person shows on to get on board with the company and his readiness.

Saturday is a weekly off and its so foolish that the student scheduled it that day. Incase the schedule was so tight that he couldn attend on any weekday,the reply would have been like

Dear Sir,

I would like to thank you for an opportunity for the interview. However due to my classes, i will not be able to make it on a weekday. Requesting you if we can have the interview scheduled at 2pm on saturday.If not i will try to make it up on a weekday trying to squeeze in between my sched (fri 2pm)

i believe that the student x went wrong at two points… 1. he sh have given more possible timings and consider the availability of his hiring manager… that way it would have been pleasing to the manager.. 2. student x jus gave a blank statement "I’m available on Saturday at 2 PM".. he didn mention the local time of that place which should also be considered….. hope my comments were reasonable..:–)

I feel that Saturday is a holiday and therefore, he lacked commonsense.

You need not be so polite to ans. "Anytime you say, Sir”. Or “I am ready right now, Sir". He is asking you for timing which will be convenient for you. Maybe he could have said I am available from 2:00 pm to 3:00pm from monday to saturday. There are some timings when you are travelling or busy or doing your daily chores. Such timings are not convenient for you to answer the call. Instead of answering call me after 1 hr or half hour, just tell them the timings which are not convenient for you.

No, it was'nt appropriate at all…. He would have asked the recruiter to fix the time whatever goes well with him. The reason may that he was a little frivolous or arrogant or may be totally out of any professional experience(but that's not expected from somebody pursuing a masters degree)

Hi HSB, is this the full reply of the student or some part of the email has been chopped off? This is because the email looks too terse. I don't think anybody would send a 1-liner like that without even a greetings or best regards and so on. Can we have the transcript of the full email instead of quote and unquotes?

i guess that he wasn't wrong!!!! i think Mr. Y responded back to the student only because his profile is good….i believe that there is no harm in scheduling for a particular time(by the student) as long as it is not a holiday

Hey friends, The statement that the student made seems highly irresponsible and it portrays the lack of interest. He did not even know that no company stays live on Saturday in the US. This shows the lack of common sense. He did not even bother to greet the Hiring manager. One line reply would have seriously irritated the manager and he did not even bother to mention the local timings. He failed to bag a wonderful opportunity just because he did not use his brain. He must have provided a convenient timing or he must have said something like "Anytime this week between 3.00-4.00 PST" or "anytime today sir"…. So the Indian students really need some basic training in these aspects. The colleges are now trying really hard right from the freshmen year to impart these skills in the students and equip them for the future interviews. A lot of mock interviews must also be conducted so that the students do not suffer in the later years when they are to face a real interview. So get yourself equipped and never ever lose opportunities in life. Cheers. Your loving friend, Rajkamal.M

There is nothing wrong in what the student said.As a software consultant I have taken interviews on saturday night and sunday afternoons.Not jus one in my career.I can say atleast 6-8 interviews.It depends on who is the client and how the inerview takes it.Common on..What if the student is working part time on weekdays.Can he take interview during the job?Lot of companies today adpet to your request and make necessary arrangements to get qualified candidates.

I think the student was right in specifying the time but was wrong in the way he specified it.

It would have been much better had the student first found out if an interview on Saturday is possible and then say his/her suitable timing. In specifying the timing also the student should have provided not a specific time but a time range like 2-4PM.

Also the way X responded sounds very unprofessional and demanding. Any hiring manager would surely get a bad impression. And since it was a phone interview, some time during workdays could have been much better. All it takes for the interview is a connection and a silent room, not a big deal even if you work part-time.